In 1971 I received a call to the Oklahoma Mission. As most returned missionaries will agree, those two years of service are an incredible experience. One of the great blessings of my mission was gaining a love for the study of the gospel, a passion that remains part of me some 35 years later.
In 1989, my journey in gospel study took a new turn when I was called as the teacher for the Gospel Doctrine class in the Federal Way 4th Ward (Federal Way Washington Stake). I found that my personal study changed as I prepared for the weekly class and I was rewarded with new insights. I continued to serve as a Gospel Doctrine teacher until 2005 (with a couple of small breaks). In September 2005 we moved from Auburn, Washington, to Centennial, Colorado. I am currently teaching the Gospel Principles course.
One of the challenges in preparing for a weekly Sunday School class is attempting to compress the available material into a forty minute presentation. I found I could not do it. While teaching in the Federal Way 7th Ward, several class members gathered together for an informal discussion group one Sunday each month. We discussed principles touched upon during the class presentation. We had a wonderful time. After a couple years we decided it was more important to be with our families on Sunday evening.
The next opportunity for expanding on the Sunday School class came when I discovered the Internet. I was fascinated by the idea of building webpages and sharing ideas with a wider audience. In 1998, I began posting my Sunday School outlines on the web for the benefit of those in my weekly class. They thought it was a great idea and it became a catalyst for better preparation for both myself and class members.
Somehow word about the website leaked out and others started visiting. I began receiving e-mail thanking me for my efforts and encouraging me to continue the website. Thus, some eight years later I am still posting my outlines to
The Gospel Doctrine Class on a weekly basis. In those eight years, people have written me from 49 of the 50 states, 7 Canadian provinces, and 44 countries. It has been a wonderful experience as I have communicated with brothers and sisters from California to Chile, New York to Singapore, and Utah to Ghana.
This blog is intended to provide a place for discussion of those things covered in the weekly Sunday School lessons, the gospel in general, the Church, and the great blessings that come from membership in the Lord's kingdom. Please feel free to join with me in sharing your thoughts and experiences.
Thanks to LDSfiles for hosting this blog and for providing summaries and links to my Gospel Doctrine outlines.
Read the original "Gospel Doctrine Class" post here.
The Gospel Doctrine Class Blog
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